School is in session, and Trap Them are teaching a graduate level course on how to make a blackened-crust hardcore record in 2014. Let me illustrate: first, that ride cymbal in the opening of “Habitland.” Sometimes busy drumming or blast beats aren’t what you need. More bands need to hang riffs on a ride cymbal break that actually rides—that shit is heavy. Next, write interesting guitar leads. The riff in “Gift and Gift Unsteady” is raw and pop-level hooky. After that, let the drummer do his thing. More so than any record in recent memory, the drumming on Blissfucker sets the tone for the album and is as attention-grabbing as the riffs. Finally, change up that tempo and use dynamics. The guitar-less break at the end of “Habitland” and the sludgy dirges that round out the album deserve attentive listening. Blissfucker proves that aggressive music doesn’t have to be one note. –Peter Fryer